It is well known that the addition of a streamling device to a truck tractor or trailer has a positive effect on operating efficiency due to the reduction in overall aerodynamic drag at highway speeds. A number of devices have appeared for this purpose, including U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,779, issued to applicant. Streamlining devices have proliferated since the energy crunch in the early seventies.
The instant invention relates to a particular type of trailer, specifically the "container" of the type which is removed completely from the tractor and train and stacked several deep in the hold of a ship. The container is a very blunt type trailer, designed to pack very compactly in containerships for oceanic transport. When removed from the ships, the containers are placed on the trailer frames with wheels to become very blunt semi-trailers. These trailers are in need of a streamlining device. Although they may be pulled by tractors with cab-mounted steamling devices, theses are generally ineffectual due to the large space between the tractor and the container-trailer. Since the nature of the container industry requires compact stacking and packing, it is not practicable to incorporate permanently installed streamlining devices on the containers.
There is thus a need for a termporarily installed streamlining device for shipping containers which may be installed to reduce drag during land-based transport and removed for ocean transport. It is also highly desirable that such a removable system be quick and simple to attach and remove and be capable of installation and removal by an unaided truck driver while standing on the ground. It is further desirable that the streamlining device be collapsible into a relatively small package so that it easily fits in the tractor cab when not in use.
The instant invention fulfills all of the above needs by providing an inflatable streamlining body with apparatus, including a pair of mounting poles, which can be used to hoist the inflated body up and secure it to the upper front portion of the container.
To install the apparatus, the two mounting poles each have a hook detent at the top and these hooks are hooked into the respective lifting holes which are provided in the corners of the container. Once the tops of the poles are engaged, the bottom ends of the poles are cinched down into the lower loading holes of the container, so that the two poles mounted in this fashion provide a frame for the mounting of the inflatable body.
Either before or after inflating, the inflated body is pulled into place with a pair of ropes or lines that engage through pulleys in the upper ends of the mounting poles and are fastened to D rings in the upper portion of the inflatable body. These ropes may also pass through D rings in the lower portions of the inflatable body, subsequent to which they also are cinched to the container body for a strong, reliable mounting.